Demoralized Democrats admit they've lost public trust as they seek new anti-Trump strategy
Democrats left reeling after President Donald Trump's victory say that the party needs to work to regain the trust of voters in a new report.
"Joe Biden is leaving as a very unpopular Democratic president, we lost the popular vote and people are pissed at us over inflation, culture and the border," Democratic strategist and ex-Harris staffer Mike Nellis told Politico. "We have to change our tact because we have to earn people’s trust back."
While Democrats in Trump's first term focused their opposition to Trump through a "resistance" movement that leaned heavily on constant media appearances from Nancy Pelosi, Chuck Schumer and other party leaders to attack Republicans, some say that Democrats need to change tactics.
"The path to prominence is not in endless resistance headlines," an adviser to a potential 2028 presidential candidate told Politico.
Democrats are "being more measured because people are just so tired, so there isn’t the energy to stay at an 11 for the next four years," Michigan state Sen. Mallory McMorrow told the outlet. "My advice is, call it out, be blunt, but don’t shriek about it."
Other Democrats said that there is a leadership void within the party that presents difficulties but also opportunities for those willing to take on the "mantle" of responsibility, one party operative told Politico.
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"People are still struggling with the framework of how you challenge Donald Trump for failing to deliver for working people, but the frame is there, right now, it’s — he’s up for auction," progressive political strategist Faiz Shakir said. "But maybe it’s uncomfortable language for Democrats, who haven’t talked like this for a long time, to talk about the ruling elites."
Another Democratic strategist told Politico that some party leaders are being overly cautious after their defeat by Trump.
"If you’re thinking of running for president in 2027, I understand why your advisers are saying, keep your head down and pick your spots," the advisor said. "No one wants to stick their head up yet, but they’re also over-learning their lesson of 2017 and 2018, worrying about whether the resistance efforts ultimately helped candidates — or didn’t — when they ran for president in 2019."